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Second Language

HSK 4 Vocabulary: Characters and Pinyin

1 min readLast updated

The new HSK 3.0 Level 4 adds 1,000 new vocabulary terms and 441 new Chinese characters, for 2,000 words and 1,096 characters in total.[1]

Here you can find the full HSK Level 4 vocabulary list, with pinyin and translations for each word.

HSK 4 download

View all HSK downloads Free HSK 4 PDF download

HSK 3.0 Level 4 • 1,000 new words • 441 new characters

★ words make an appearance in Second Language

#SimplifiedTraditionalPinyinEnglish
1啊啊āah (interjection of surprise)
2爱情愛情àiqíngromance; love
3爱心愛心àixīncompassion; kindness
4安检安檢ānjiǎnto go through security; security check
5安排安排ānpáito arrange; to plan
6按按ànto press; according to
7按时按時ànshíon time; on schedule
8按照按照ànzhàoaccording to; in accordance with
9白酒白酒báijiǔbaijiu (Chinese liquor)
10办公辦公bàngōngto work in an office
11办理辦理bànlǐto handle; to process
12办事辦事bànshìto handle affairs; to work
13棒棒bànggreat; wonderful
14保护保護bǎohùto protect
15保证保證bǎozhèngto guarantee; guarantee
16抱抱bàoto hug; to hold
17报考報考bàokǎoto sign up for an exam
18报名報名bàomíngto sign up; to register
19抱歉Taught in Second Language抱歉bàoqiànsorry; apologetic
20背背bēito carry on one's back
21背包背包bēibāobackpack
22北部北部běibùnorthern part; north
23倍倍bèitimes (multiplier); -fold
24本科本科běnkēundergraduate (program)
25本来本來běnláioriginal; originally; at first

Showing words 1–25 of 1,000

Questions about HSK 4

How many words are in HSK Level 4?
The new HSK 3.0 Level 4 adds 1,000 new vocabulary terms, for 2,000 words in total through this level.[1]
How many characters do you need for HSK 4?
The new HSK 3.0 Level 4 adds 1,000 new vocabulary terms, but only 441 new Chinese characters, because many of the new words reuse characters from earlier levels, such as:
  • 不 (not): 不过 (but), 不够 (not enough), 不断 (continuously)
  • 出 (to go or come out): 出口 (exit), 出现 (to appear), 出租 (to rent out)
By the end of this level, you need to know 1,096 characters in total.[1]
How long does it take to pass each HSK level?
The Chinese HSK becomes more difficult as the levels increase, and upper levels contain more and more vocabulary, which is naturally harder and more advanced as well. For someone very hard-working you may be able to pass HSK 1 or 2 exams with 3-6 months of serious study, but proficiency at upper levels may take a few years to reach. See our full HSK Guide for more guidance.
Where can I download the HSK vocabulary lists?
You can find our full HSK download page here which provides free PDF, CSV, JSON and Anki text file downloads for each level in the new HSK 3.0 syllabus.
Where can I find the other HSK Levels?
The new HSK 3.0 syllabus has nine levels: HSK 1 to 6, then HSK 7–9 as one combined, advanced group.

Handwriting Practice

Interested in learning how to write Chinese characters by hand? Check out our free Chinese stroke writing tool, which includes stroke writing animations for all the Chinese HSK characters.

Practice writing characters

Sources

  1. HSK 3.0 syllabus (2025)Chinese Testing International
  2. CC-CEDICTcc-cedict.org
  3. CC BY-SA 4.0Creative Commons